The Boy Who Lived
by Sunraia
Summary: An account of how a surviving child endangered the future of an entire city. Written from the perspective of Kiaransalee followers. Original characters.


Once upon a time, in this very city we stand in, a young boy named Dalhar was walking through the enchanted caves. He was looking for some food to feed his pet lizardman with. The creature was always hungry, and had been eyeing Dalhar maliciously of late. Dalhar wasn't a complete idiot, so here he was, a cloth bag filled with dead rats trailing after him. Suddenly he heard a scratching sound coming from behind the rocks.

"Oh boy!" said Dalhar, and the sound suddenly stopped, "That sounded like a really big rat!" and Dalhar ran around the rocks. But it wasn't the scraping of claws that had made the sound. It had been the sharpening of knives. Before Dalhar even knew what was happening, the foreign boy was on top of him, his two knives planted into Dalhar's stomach. The boys rolled down a slope. Dalhar's strength faded. But then when the rolling stopped, the other boy had a sharp rock stuck in his back, and his head slammed against another. Neither of them died. For three hours, the two boys lay on top of each other, fully unconscious. Then Dalhar woke up. He moaned, and rolled over, off of the other boy.

"My tummy feels like I've been poisoned," he said. Then he opened his eyes and looked down.

"My tummy feels like I've been stabbed," he said now, and it was the truth. Two hilts still stuck out of his belly. Then the foreign boy moaned, but he didn't wake up. Dalhar looked at him.

"He looks like he's been stabbed too," Dalhar said, "He must be my friend." So Dalhar didn't kill the boy, even though he tried to kill Dalhar first. Instead he hauled him up and staggered back to the city with him. The bag of rat corpses was left behind, forgotten. On the way back to the city, they passed a Priestess of the Lady.

"Halt!" she said, "I know you, Dalhar, but who is the boy? Why is he hurt, and why do you not kill him?"

"His name is Jor," Dalhar said. He named the boy Rat, because he'd been looking for rats when they met. "Jor was hurt when he was taking Vengeance on the boy that attacked me. I'm bringing him to be Healed, so we can spread Vengeance together."

"Very well," spoke the Priestess, and she did not kill Jor. Dalhar staggered on, dragging the foreign boy along. He believed the story he told. They reached the city gates.

"Halt!" shouted a guard, "You came through here earlier, Dalhar, but who is the boy? Why is he hurt, and why do you not kill him?"

"His name is Jor," repeated Dalhar, "Jor was hurt when he was taking Vengeance on the large man that attacked me. I'm bringing him to be Healed, so we can spread Vengeance together."

"Very well," the guard said, and he did not kill Jor. The gate was opened, and Dalhar staggered on, dragging the foreign boy along. He believed the story he told. They reached the Healer's Ward.

"Halt!" said one of the Healers, "Are you hurt again, Dalhar? Who is the boy? Why is he hurt, and why did you not kill him?"

"Yes, I'm hurt again," Dalhar said. The Healers knew him well, but they never killed him. "This is Jor. Jor was hurt when he was taking Vengeance on the Spider Priestess that attacked me. I'm bringing him to be Healed as well, so we can spread Vengeance together."

The Healer sighed, shook her head, and she did not kill either of the boys. Instead she assigned Healers to them both. After they were both Healed, the foreign boy awoke. He looked around, scared.

"Don't worry, Jor," Dalhar said to him, "You were hurt when you took Vengeance on the Spider Queen, when she attacked me. I got you Healed, so we can spread Vengeance together."

Dalhar believed the story he told. Jor looked confused for a bit, but then he smiled at his new friend.

"Yes," he said, "Together, we'll spread lots of Vengeance. Before we do, why don't you show me around the city?"

So Dalhar did just that. At the end of the day, Jor said he was going home, but he would return tomorrow to spread Vengeance with Dalhar's help. The boys said goodnight, and Jor went on his way. He was going to the homes of the Spider Drow, to tell them all he had seen in the Lady Vengeance's city.

"Tomorrow," he said to himself, "I will return with our Spider army. I will spread our Vengeance all through their city, all thanks to Dalhar, who did not kill me."

Barely had the words left his mouth, or he spotted Glenn Alur coming from the Spider city with similar news. Glenn did not halt, or ask questions, but instead delivered swift Vengeance to the foreign boy. And because Glenn killed the boy, our city still stands today.

**The End**


End file.
